Unfolding Golden Vulnerability
by Althea S. Hart
Summary: Lucy will tolerate Natsu's antics and thoughtless nature of invading her personal space through gnashing teeth on a near daily basis; however, when Gray begins to exhibit similar behavior, she discovers a metaphorical line won't deter his intent to alter their relationship beyond standards of simple friends, especially since his gestures are becoming more daring by the day.


**Summary:** Lucy will tolerate Natsu's antics and thoughtless nature of invading her personal space through gnashing teeth on a near daily basis; however, when Gray begins to exhibit similar behavior, she discovers a metaphorical line won't deter his intent to alter their relationship beyond standards of simple friends, especially since his gestures are becoming more daring by the day. She wonders where this sudden change of demeanor has rooted from or if he has been suppressing unsaid emotions all these years.

**Author's Note:** Please keep in mind—I have only read the manga up to the Battle of Fairy Tail Arc. My knowledge of the story arcs following after is pitifully lacking. For this reason, this story will take place post-Alvarez Empire Arc, and we're going to pretend the 100 Years Quest Arc does not exist.

**Disclaimer:** All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of Mashima Hiro. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended.

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Chapter 1

Lucy will tolerate Natsu's antics and thoughtless nature of invading her personal space through gnashing teeth on a near daily basis. Natsu is Natsu—sometimes ignorant, sometimes naive but mostly her dear friend.

She doubts her capacity to adapt to her team's bizarre habits (apart from Wendy, bless the precious girl); however, that mindset wears off quick the more they mingle into her life. It takes months before Lucy begins to build enough trust and a bond to accept them barraging her haven, albeit reluctantly. Her apartment _was_ meant to be a sanctuary, but she supposes now it's too much to ask, considering who her team consists of. To withstand the recklessness at the guild is enough for her, and, as much as she loves her companions, it can be draining at times. Yet, in spite of their outlandish habits, which include eating her food, rummaging through her belongings, and taking residence of her bed whether she's sleeping in it or not, they are welcomed nonetheless. As much as their over-familiarity grates on the walls of her skull, she finds it equally touching. The nurturing role within her delights in her ability to provide a home for her friends.

The usual rowdiness draws her back into the present. Natsu insists on celebrating their successful mission, and out comes a couple bottles of alcohol and a massive feast. Hours later on her way to excuse herself for the night, a drunk Natsu intercedes her leaving by latching onto her. At her pleading, Erza promptly takes hold of the slurring dragon slayer and proceeds to pinch a nerve in his neck to knock him out.

"It makes it easier to handle him," she says before throwing him over her armored shoulder and continuing forward with deadly nonchalance.

Not a moment later, Gray stumbles his way after them and proceeds to barrel into Lucy much the same way as Natsu had. She gives him credit for trying to apologize in his stupor. He loses the ability to properly walk after the collision, though, and Lucy is not exaggerating when she says it is not an easy feat to half-support-half-drag a 5'11" man weighing at 190-something pounds of muscle. She struggles to support the ice mage, who can't put one foot in front of the other, as they make their way to her apartment.

With their frequent visits, Lucy has purchased a futon for such cases. That allows a company of two while the couch is open for one, and then she usually shares her bed with another. Everyone stumbles inside, or she does at least. She allows the other three and two exceeds to go about as they wish, because she's occupied trying to figure out a way to tuck Gray in. Finally, she comes out victorious. Exhaustion strikes quick and she eventually collapses beside him. The following morning, she recognizes Natsu and Erza taking advantage of the futon with Happy somewhere in between the tangled comforters and pillows, Wendy curled up on the couch with Carla in her arms, and Gray half on top of her on the bed. Her blanket cocoons them, their legs seemingly interlocked in an impossible knot, and his arms might as well be a vise with the amount of strength used to shackle her close and helpless.

It isn't her first time sleeping with either of her boys. She has slept in between them on numerous accounts during and even out of missions, and at this point she has discovered their sleeping quirks to a fault. Guilty as pleaded, she actually invites them to bed based on the environment. How the mighty have fallen. With summer's unforgiving homecoming, Gray has been her consistent bed mate, but she doesn't expect to wake up smothered underneath him. He usually keeps to his side with remarkable control, except the occasional wandering hands while deeply dreaming. Sleep with them at her side with a respectable distance she has done plenty of times, sleep with them draped atop her like a familiar lover—there is something uncomfortable about Gray's weight and warmth enveloping her, something she refuses to think of, because it's not necessarily a terrible kind of discomfort, and that's what spooks her.

Lucy tries to escape her sleeping companion. The more she struggles, however, the more Gray slips over the edge, dragging her along. In a desperate act to save them the kiss with the floor, she yanks him closer while her free arm seeks purchase somewhere behind her, only to have his heavy body outweigh her efforts, and they both plummet. A painful fall and awkward positioning later, the impact alerts the others awake, and it it _chaos_ after everything registers. Natsu just about busts his lungs laughing at their predicament, a compromising situation of two bodies thrashing for balance and freedom. He should not be touching her there, and her legs keep pressing into somewhere unspeakable. After disentangling them from that damned blanket, an irate Gray sets her aside with a gentle push before ensuing a brawl by lunging at Natsu. Erza cuts in just as it becomes heated, no pun intended. Gray doesn't take kindly to his frenemy gloating about taking a win for that match.

Three days pass, three days of enduring the overwhelming, vengeful-bent mind of a certain water mage all because Natsu decided to announce to the world about their sleeping arrangements after engaging in another dispute with Gray, the latter gaining an advantage, thus compelling the former to play dirty. Lucy has never seen the woman move so fast before, arm coiled with a typhoon ready to slay her dubbed love rival. Her ass is still suffering the aftermath of a good whipping Juvia managed to land.

So consumed by her thoughts, Lucy doesn't realize her unconscious movements taking her to the bar.

"The usual?" Mira blesses her with a sympathetic smile, taking note of the brooding celestial mage ensnared by her less than pleasant thoughts.

"Spike it just a hint?" A buzz sounds nice right now, something to distract her from the bruise not even the bar stool cushion can assuage. If only her past-self can see her now; drinking during the middle of the day and willingly sleeping with men! Although, to give her credit, sharing a bed with her boys had taken a lot longer to get used to, and she has no habits like Cana. She can only imagine her father rolling in his grave. The image of his stricken face lightens her mood by a fraction.

"Anything for you," the charismatic barmaid cooes, and then sets about to blend a strawberry concoction with a modest splash of rum.

"You're the best, Mira," Lucy says as soon as she takes a long pull of her go-to drink, slowly feeling the effects of the rum warming her system in an icy yet fiery way. What Mira remarks next makes Lucy swallow too fast and choke.

"Still denying the fact of sharing a bed with Gray?" Her eyes gleam a wicked sapphire, hoping to wrangle an answer from her friend.

Lucy wants to wrench that cheekiness off, lock it in a box, and toss it over the ends of the earth where she may never find it again. She bemoans as the other laughs. Mira is teasing, of course, accepting nothing truly happened after Lucy had fervently shot down all the fantasies conjuring up within her rather perverse mind. That doesn't discourage her from taunting Lucy, though.

Before Lucy can refute, someone unceremoniously plunks into the stool to her right. She tears her attention away from swirling the thick, carnation pink remedy with her straw to see who has joined their company.

The newcomer grunts, "Mira, I doubt the more you ask, the likelier the chances are you'll get the answer you want," and cards his fingers into the tousled ink of his hair, briefly giving show of the distinctive scar above his brow she knows so well like the spines of her books.

"Gray!" Lucy swats his arm in horror, to which he hitches a fierce brow at her in levity. "Don't say it like that; you'll give her hopes that something happened, which nothing did," she seethes, dowsing the flame building within the eyes of the take-over mage.

"Oh, boo." The other two wave off her plastic disappoint with nothing but a glance.

Gray only offers a slant of his lips, midnight eyes sharpening with mischief as he peers at Lucy from beneath his lashes. She rolls her eyes at the smoldering gaze Juvia would swoon under, sneering at him when he dares to pat her honey crown. He then glides his fingers through a branch of hair falling at her temple and weaves them behind her ear, grazing the pliable skin as he does so. She curls into the touch out of surprise, pulling a private smile from her friend. Gray gives a final, endearing ruffle before leaving her alone, knowing she doesn't hate it but will never admit so, and just between him and no one in particular, he enjoys spoiling her with such affections once in a while.

Shifting to the barmaid, he asks, "Mint water, please?"

Mira intently notices the way Gray melts into his seat, molding with it and casually extending his arm out to encase the back of Lucy's own stool. His calloused fingers twitch once when whisking against the veil of Lucy's hair. She thinks he might brush the honey strands to feel them again, but they sink into the leather shelled back and still, resisting the urge to bangle her hair between his fingers, restraining himself. His movements are natural, it's as if he has done it time and time again. Interesting.

"Mira?" Lucy scrunches her eyebrows in concern at the woman who seems to be in an uncharacteristic daze.

The barmaid in question lifts her gaze to latch onto her patrons and smiles. With a quick apology, she turns to fill a glass of iced water and throws in a couple mint leaves. Lucy slices her eyes to find Gray also seeking out her own. They share a perplexed glance.

"What was that about?" Lucy murmurs.

His shoulder lifts in a lazy shrug and falls slack, while his fingers circle one of the many buttons of his shirt, which is already unclasped by the first two. "No idea. Never seen her space out like that before."

Lucy can say much the same, downing more of her smoothie and humming at the pleasant tingles simmering just beneath her skin. Mira returns only to give her attention to other guild members hailing for her, leaving the pair alone again. Lucy swears she catches Mira smile a troubling kind of smile before she's gone with a flutter of her hair and dress.

"So I heard Juvia was giving you a hard time." Gray turns that slanted smirk to his friend again. The urge to laugh at her twisted face is easy to overcome with a quick bite to his tongue.

He knows exactly what his poor friend is undergoing, and if her stormy look and the still vindictive water mage lurking somewhere is anything to consider, he doubts it's rainbows and sunshine for Lucy. He hadn't cared about Natsu's bait attempt to embarrass him by calling him out for sleeping in the same bed as Lucy, because nothing had happened and he frankly doesn't give two shits if others know. There's no reason to be ashamed, because the guild isn't one for rumors. They're a family who trust each other with a deep level of openness and understanding. Although, Gray does feel a bit guilty for having not denied such an accusation and had boasted about it instead. It was unfortunate Juvia happened to be in hearing range.

He had said something along the lines of, "At least Lucy wanted me to sleep with her," and then proceeded to tear through Natsu's worth of being a sleeping partner, which was a strike at his worth of being a man in general. At that moment, he knew the murderous intent vining up everyone's nape was directed to none other than the celestial mage caught in the middle of everything. When Lucy survived the assault, she would make sure he most certainly did not survive her plan for retribution. His doom will be on himself for rising to Natsu's challenge.

He might have taken it a bit too far with the goading. The guild could do nothing but send their sympathies, wincing at the razor crack in the air and a keening yelp that followed after. No one had any intentions of crossing paths with the scorning woman. Gray knows Lucy can be left to her own devices when handling Juvia, knowing no real harm will ever be done (at least he assumes not), but that day might have been Lucy's death without an intervention. He had managed to soothe the raging woman as the other fled out of the vicinity to nurse her glowing rump.

"That's a severe understatement," Lucy grouses, pushing away her cleaned glass and huffing with all the intention to make it known it isn't a merry experience and to lean back into her stool.

He quickly relocates his arm to grip the outer ledge so he won't hinder the woman and chuckles, the sonorous chortle building from the back of his rich throat and echoing behind his closed lips.

"Sorry?" he says, pressing the rim of his glass to his lips pulled into a not-so-sorry crook.

She narrows her eyes at his blatant insincerity. "Say sorry to my ass, because Juvia sure didn't hold back when giving me a whipping. I still can't sit without feeling the bruise." As if to further validate her statement, she fidgets, the leather protesting against her bare thighs, and rubs a hand against her hip.

With a sinful grin, he makes a bold crack at her. "It was kind of sexy, if you ask me. I could feel the guild heating up."

She gapes for a full five seconds before regaining her bearings. Failing to suppress the roses blooming across her cheeks at the unusual remark and devilish yet attractive leer her _friend_, for Mavis' sake, sends her, she hisses, "My ass sure was hot after that hit! You're despicable, Fullbuster."

Raising a palm which begins to coat over with a thin bedding of ice, he lifts a dark slash of his eyebrow and says, "Need me to help you ice the sore?"

That promptly earns him a sharp whopping to his taut stomach now naked beneath his open button shirt. The hit leaves him a bit breathless, yet he can't help but laugh, clutching her shoulder to give her a little shake.

Alarmed at the skin-to-skin contact, Lucy whips her head to see why. "You haven't even been here for ten minutes and you're already stripping," she indicates with a flick to the unfastened flap, but more so to change the subject because her insides are strangely simmering from his playfully naughty comments.

His eyes drop to see she is, indeed, correct but makes no gesture to save himself the embarrassment, or lack thereof.

At the speed of a bullet, his mirth melts into an intense mask. The abrupt expression change makes her reel. "Button it up for me, will ya?"

Face igniting with color, as if it isn't already so, Lucy gives a shrill cry at his second remark in a row. She thrusts her palm into his chest to push him away, and her attempt only earns another hearty laugh. He finally appeases her by closing his shirt.

"If I get another whipping from Juvia, I'm coming after you, and it won't look pretty."

He tugs her that much closer until her other shoulder brushes against his chest. "Shall I expect the same kinky punishment?"

"Gray, I swear to the Spirit King!" But she's having difficulty hiding her laughter, not only because it's working to cheer her up, but because he's jokingly flirting with her and it's making her giddy.

She has never expected that from him, especially him. It's as different as it is sensational. She will admit it's strange and rather out of character for her friend, so much so she's tempted to ask who he is and what he has done with the real Gray. But she can't lie; she doesn't dislike it. Besides, it isn't everyday that an attractive man flirts with her, even if said man is her close friend with a love-sick Juvia on his heels. She isn't so cruel as to discredit Gray's near devastating looks, either.

"Alright, alright, I'll stop...for now." At his last remark, the ice mage winks at her and claims the back of her chair once more.

She harrumphs, resisting the urge to hit him again and smile. Not wanting to give him the pleasure of her amusement, she drones, "I think I feel the vengeful presence of our water mage getting closer. Go away."

"Ouch." Gray feigns a wince, clutching at his chest and spewing forth as much sarcasm into the single exclamation as he can. She isn't impressed by his false hurt.

"Hahaha," is her blank reply. "Seriously, I'm not looking forward to avoiding the guild all because of a little misunderstanding. You know I have rent to pay."

"Maybe we really should invest in a home for us all."

Once when they had crashed at her apartment for half a week after a particularly brutal mission, Lucy made a sarcastic quip suggesting they should invest in a home for them all, to which the antithetical elemental mages vehemently opposed to. Their outburst earned them a severe restraint by the nape from Erza. She agreed it wouldn't be such a terrible consideration, but Lucy waved it off as a joke. She did not want to endure their antics more than she already had to, more specifically Natsu and Gray's competitive tendencies which always took a violent turn. Even with their individual space she knew they wouldn't be able to steer clear of her and anything belonging to her for so long. One way or another, she magnetized them unwittingly.

"That was a joke! Besides, do you know how much worse that would make my situation?"

"I'm assuming you don't just mean Juvia?" He traces the rim of his glass with a finger.

"I see you and Natsu enough. I really don't need that twenty-four hours," she deadpans.

Gray knows she isn't coming off as harsh as she would like. True, she would like to have privacy, but she has grown so used to their company that if they all did end up living together she won't look twice. It isn't as if she will do anything to stop them anyway, not that he will rub that fact into her face if he wants to steer safe from another hit. Erza's strength is beginning to rub off on Lucy's, he dully notes.

"Nah, we like your apartment just the way it is," he says into his glass, his voice echoing from the cylinder barrier and his breath fogging it opaque.

Lucy snorts. "No joke; you're all like dogs scenting your territory." That paints an interesting picture in her head, imagining her team looking identical to Plue but with their characterizing hair to tell them apart.

Gray sees her folding her lips inward, as if holding back laughter, rousing his curiosity at the sudden change of mood. Knowing she won't spill, he lets it slide, choosing to go along with the conversation instead.

"Don't let Happy or Carla catch you saying that," he murmurs with a quick jab at her side. He practically marvels at the way his finger sinks into the tender skin of her curves, quite enjoying the sensation.

One thing he has learned over the years is how ticklish Lucy can be. Extremely ticklish. Her body is mapped out with hot and cold marks, hot being the most likely to elicit squealing or have the woman fold within herself and possibly send her bolting across the room in 0.2 seconds, and cold being least likely to get a rise, maybe a flinch if she's caught unaware but nothing like the erogenous areas would produce. If touched just the right way, the woman is helpless when responding, only fueling her culprit to do more for the sake of sadistic entertainment. And does Gray have one hell of a sadistic streak when it comes to her.

As predicted, Lucy jolts, spine bowing at the unexpected dig. A weak and startled whine escapes her lips, much to Gray's impish amusement. She coils away, tightening her muscles, and guarding her most sensitive areas. He laughs at her vicious scowl, knowing she's having trouble restraining herself from punching him. He does deserve it from the amount of times he has messed with her in a span of minutes.

With hands suspended up in surrender, he admits, "Okay, guilty. Have at me." He taps his chest once, giving her full leverage to hit him as she pleases.

Lucy narrows her eyes at him for a long moment, waiting for him to waver under her scrutinizing glare. Deciding he can't mean any more harm than he has already dished out, which she wonders if she's truly naive enough to believe so, she reaches where he indicates. Once her knuckles chafe the worn cotton of his shirt, feeling the heat of his body caressing her skin, she presses her fist against his chest. It isn't hard enough to cause pain or even discomfort, but it's firm enough to push him into his stool where the back meets the grooves of his spine. Lucy hears him grunt just a whisper from the solid pressure and connects eyes with him. He offers a slight smirk, contrasting the sweet twist of her frowning lips. It isn't even funny how much he can get on her nerves at times.

"You're lucky I'm too sore to Lucy-Kick you." Mirth glazes over her half-hearted threat.

"Yeah, yeah." Gray tenderly shackles her much daintier wrist in his large hand and presses the roughed pad of his thumb onto her pulse, slowly sliding up to press into her soft palm. He gauges the way puzzlement shifts her feminine features at his unfamiliar action, but it doesn't alarm her enough to make her withdraw from the contact. Encouraged, the ice mage removes her hand from his person and holds on for a hot minute, neither exchanging a word. He softens his smile, and she returns it after a moment.

"Nothing happened, you say?"

Lucy yelps when Mira severs through the tender moment. Clutching her thrashing heart with her spare hand, the blonde woman attempts to snatch her composure, making no move to free her captured limb. Gray, on the contrary, hardly indicates he's as startled as his companion, just tossing the barmaid an impassive look.

"Mira, don't do that to my heart!"

"Oh, my bad. I'll leave that job to Gray." She sends an all knowing wink at the man who decides not to say anything in turn for fear of another hit.

Lucy wrestles her wrist free with little effort, crosses her arms and refuses to give into the remark. Mira doesn't bother to hide her disappointment. The celestial mage suspects Mira won't let up any time soon. Suddenly this day has become dreadfully longer. She's just awaiting the inevitable arrival of Juvia to hound on her to make it even better.

"Still need me to say sorry to your ass?" Gray asks.

The question conjures a comical thought, and Lucy shakes in silent laughter, not caring Mira is making goo-goo eyes their way. This time she does drive her fist to his heart hard enough he deliberately topples out of the chair and begins to dramatize withering in pain while his friend continues laughing to tears. She will admit he's pretty good at cheering her up, not that he needs to know that.


End file.
